Unreadable
by iwrite-because-i-rambletoomuch
Summary: I'm horrible at summaries... basically Tryan... Ryan Evans overhears a conversation he wasn't meant to hear, leading to confusion and a struggle to understand what is happening with Troy Bolton. Reviews would be lovely! I'll try to update freq!
1. Chapter 1

_**Hello! Just wanted to say hi, and just thanks for reading! This is my first story ever, so just… I'm sorry if it's horrible!**_

I own none of the characters or settings for this, they are all Disney's High School Musicals, and I take no credit for them other than what they do in this story.

Also, I will try to update fairly frequently… however I'm at college right now, and working, and trying to have somewhat of a life off the internet…. So just hang in there if I seem to be taking a bit! I promise I will not abandon this story!  


**Chapter 1: Lockers**  
  
Questions were being murmured in the hallways that day, whispering theories filled the air of the cafeteria, and stares were directed at the newly single individuals. Troy Bolton had went and sat with his basketball team, getting confused look and questions from Chad, but laughing them off and saying he was fine. Gabriella had joined her friends from the science club, and was calmly talking, clearly trying to avoid the gazes of everyone in the room. Though no one knew why they broke up, one thing had become apparent, and that was that Gabriella had been the one to end it.

Ryan Evans watched the scene from an upper location in the lunch room, ignoring his sister's incessant chatter and contemplated what was happening. Troy and Gabriella thought they were the only ones that knew the reason for the breakup, but in reality, Ryan had been around the corner and overheard the whole event.

The breakup had happened after school the day before. Ryan had been at his locker, getting some last minute items before he left. Sharpay was busy socializing and was the one with the car keys, so he was taking his time. He had just finished packing up his bag when he heard voices arguing from around the corner, right away he recognized them as Troy and Gabriella, and in an attempt not to interrupt stayed put at his locker.

_"Why are you doing this Gabriella? I didn't do anything wrong!"_

"You know exactly why I'm doing this Troy!"

"Is it because of last night… I told you, that didn't mean anything! I don't even know why I said that!"

"It wasn't just last night Troy! You've done it before and I always hoped that I heard you wrong… but I can't do this anymore! I can't ignore it!"

"Gabriella!"

"No Troy. Don't. You know what you said. And I think you need to figure this out. I can't be with you Troy, it isn't fair to me!"

"But I don't know why I said that name! It just slipped out and I don't know why! It's probably just stress and because we've talked more recently… just they were on my mind and that was all!"

"We were having sex and you said someone else's name Troy! How can you not understand why I'm doing this! Whether you meant to or not… you've said it before… and I will never be okay with that."

"Gabriella… please…"

"I can't Troy. We need to break up, you need to figure this out. Maybe we can stay friends, but we can't be together… I can't do this anymore."

"I'm sorry Gabriella…"

"Yeah. Me too."

The sound of footsteps echoed down the hall as Gabriella stormed away. However Troy's pleading voice quietly called after her.

_"Could you not tell people… why… or what I said… please… just give me that. You can tell them you dumped me, you can say whatever you want to say, but just don't tell them what I said."_

"Fine Troy. But you need to figure this out…"

Ryan stood in shock at his locker. Troy had said someone else's name while having sex with his girlfriend. Who was it? And what was this about not telling people? I guess this could be embarrassing to anyone in this situation, but what exactly did Troy need to figure out? Who he wanted to be with? Who was the other girl?

Puzzling over what he just heard, Ryan picked up his bag and headed around the corner, expecting it to be empty. However, sitting against the lockers, head in his hands, fingers running through his messy brown hair impatiently, was none other than Troy. Ryan froze. Would Troy know he had heard the whole conversation? Should he lie if he asked how long he had been there? Should he just tell the truth?

Troy looked up from his spot on the floor, his eyes meeting Ryan's with a look that couldn't be explained, and then quickly staring back down at the floor again. Ryan's face flushed pink, and stayed frozen in his spot, not knowing whether to keep walking or speak to Troy. Part of him wanted to sit down beside him and make sure he was alright, and find out what he had just overheard. The other part of him just wanted to run quickly out of the building, away from this boy and that look on his face.

_"He deserves it"_, thought Ryan. _"He said another girl's name. He deserves what he gets."_ Ryan started to move, planning to walk past Troy and pretend that they hadn't seen each other. _"He deserves it, he deserves it, he deserves it,"_ repeated Ryan to himself in his head. _"You can't feel bad for him. He was basically mentally cheating. He deserves to be sad."_ However another voice in Ryan's head was arguing back saying, _"But he said it was an accident and he didn't know why it happened. What does he need to figure out? What if he needs a friend Ryan? How many times have you just needed a friend?"_

_"You okay?"_ Ryan asked as he started to walk by; finally deciding that it couldn't be all that bad to ask. He wasn't even supposed to know what was going on, so it couldn't hurt. Maybe he did need a friend, or someone to listen to. Cheater or not, something was wrong with Troy, and it wasn't simply guilt. There was another emotion plastered on Troy's face, and Ryan wanted to know what it was.

Looking back up, Troy quietly replied saying,_"uh, yeah. I'm fine. Just… it's been a long week."_ This time he didn't look back at the ground but kept his gaze fixed on Ryan intensely, blue eyes on his, expression still unreadable.__

"Oh… sure… well then I'll see you later." Ryan shifted uncomfortably, not knowing what to do now except walk away. The look on Troy's face bothered him, made him squirm, made him turn red, made his heart beat faster, it was as if Troy could see right through him. Ryan didn't like this, especially when Troy's emotions couldn't be read, he wanted to understand what was happening behind those piercing blue eyes, what that look meant. He looked away though, and started walking, wondering if the intense stare would be once again directed back to the floor. __

"See you Ryan." Troy replied again quietly, sounding almost confused.

As Ryan walked away he looked back behind him, Troy was still watching him with that intense look, and Ryan quickly turned around, still confused about that unreadable expression.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Drama Practice**

Ryan lay on his bed at home, staring at the ceiling trying to think of something other than Troy Bolton. It was silly really, that he was thinking of Troy at all. Yes, Troy was attractive. Yes, Ryan was gay. But clearly, Troy was straight; he had a girlfriend or at least _had _a girlfriend, and would probably move on to the one who was on his mind enough to cause the breakup. So logically, Ryan should not be overthinking that look he saw on Troy's face in the hallway, the way his eyes had pierced through Ryan's, the way his voice pleaded with Gabriella not to tell people anything, the way he sat lost and confused against the locker.

That look in Troy's eyes was still on his mind, and that was bothersome. It wasn't like that look could have meant anything, though it felt like it should. It was too intense, it wasn't normal, and Troy never had looked at him like that. No one had ever looked at him like that, and that's what made him so uncomfortable; he couldn't place what that look was supposed to mean or say, he had nothing to go off of, no point of reference, and he was lost. Ryan needed to think of something, someone, _anything_ else.

….

The bell was ringing loudly, and students were filing into the hallway. It was the end of the day and freedom for majority of the student body; laughing and talking voices were jumbled in the air, lockers were slamming, keys were clanking together as people were making their way out to the parking lot, it was sunny and people were in a hurry to leave. However, Ryan and the drama department were still present, as they had practice for the upcoming musical today.

There was a sharp feeling in Ryan's chest as he made his way to the drama room, his stomach was in a knot, and it felt like the air around him had thinned making it difficult to breathe properly. He wasn't nervous about drama practice, it was just practice and he had his part down, he was prepared for that. Yet, he felt nervous about facing that boy with the blue eyes again. For some reason that was still bothering him, even though he had a good night sleep and had tried to rationally explain the look as Troy being upset about his breakup; that Troy would have looked at anyone like that, had they been present. But Ryan couldn't shake the look on Troy's face, and he couldn't stop questioning it, no matter how he had tried to convince himself of a meaning. He now had to spend a good two hours of drama practice with Troy, and he wasn't sure how to react if he had that same look on his face, or looked at him with that stare again. He didn't know why it is still bothering him, or why his feelings were becoming a chaotic mess, but he did know that Troy was on his mind and that maybe he had more feelings towards this very straight boy then he wanted to admit. _"If only he hadn't looked at me like that!"_ thought Ryan to himself as he opened the door to the drama room, _"I wouldn't be feeling this way. If he had just acted normal he wouldn't have given me any reason to think about him. Him and those damn blue eyes."_

...

Upon entering the drama room Ryan took a seat near his sister towards the middle of the room. Casually glancing around he saw no sign of Troy, which he had decided was a good thing. Ms. Darbus was talking about the plan for the day, and Ryan began to feel at ease. He wasn't going to see Troy today, he doesn't have to deal with it, and that was fine by him. He had been assigned to help with sets today as Ms. Darbus wanted to focus on some of the cast who were struggling to memorize their lines, so he headed to the back for paint and got to work.

Carefully, Ryan was in the back working on one of the giant trees for the set, he hated painting or at least the risk of getting paint on himself. He is going over his lines and his song for the musical in his head and was balanced on a step stool working on the top branches and leaves for the tree. The rest of the cast was either practicing or chatting with one another while working on the other pieces for the set, but the room was overall fairly quiet. That is until a door slammed and a voice echoed in through the room.

_"Sorry Ms. Darbus, I had to go to practice for the first 30minutes today."_

The voice belonged to none other than Troy Bolton, and is enough to startle Ryan so much that he dropped the paint can he was holding and lost his footing on the step ladder, clumsily landing in the paint spill on the floor.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Paint**

_"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck." _Ryan was now laying in paint on the ground, covering his face with his hands and angrily swearing at his embarrassment. He was now covered with paint, it was on his clothes, in his hair, and was the exact reason he hated painting! These things always happened! Now everyone was staring at him, and he could feel his face burning again. He also could feel someone kneeling next to him, hands on his shoulders, but he really didn't want to own up to the humiliation of himself covered in paint.__

"Mr. Evan's, language please." Ms. Darbus lectured from somewhere nearby. Even in a situation like this she couldn't let things go. __

"Shoot.. I am so sorry… I didn't mean to startle anyone… I shouldn't have come in yelling." This apology was coming from Troy Bolton, however his voice wasn't coming from across the room like Ryan had assumed, in fact the voice was coming from right next to him, almost directly above him. Troy Bolton was the person holding Ryan's shoulders currently, and this only made Ryan turn a brighter shade of pink. He knew he was going to need to uncover his face sooner or later, and was going to be looking into the eyes of Troy Bolton yet again. He wasn't completely sure he could handle that. __

"Mr. Bolton, next time think about your actions before going through with them. Not only have you created a mess, but you have interrupted rehearsal. This is Theater Mr. Bolton! Theater! Respect the arts, Mr. Bolton! This is not your sports posse!" Ms. Darbus continued to lecture about theater as Ryan uncovered his face. He was positive his face was a shade of pink at this moment, and it probably had increased to a darker shade as he uncovered his eyes to find Troy staring directly at him. Those piercing blue eyes hit him with that same intense look that had been on his mind for the past day, but this time it was mixed with something apologetic and of awkward embarrassment. __

"Sorry Ms. Darbus" answered Troy as he continued to stare at Ryan. He could feel Troy's gaze looking over his face and scanning over the paint that was now everywhere. He started grinning at this point, almost laughing and whispered, _"At least this is washable paint… and this isn't a bad color for you… but just… hold still there is some that might drip into your eye."_ Before Ryan could assess the situation, Troy was running his thumb gently above his eye removing the paint. Ryan's eyes got wide, and his and Troy's eyes locked again as Troy continued to run his thumb gently across his face.

_"Umm… thanks… I'm sure it's gone now,_" Stuttered Ryan, who's breathing had now drastically increased, along with his heartbeat. Troy quickly moved his hand away and glanced around awkwardly, turning slightly pink. Ryan tried to make eye contact again, but Troy was now glancing around and avoiding his gaze. __

"Detention Mr. Bolton, and you get to spend the rest of the day cleaning up this mess. But first help Ryan get cleaned up." If only Ms. Darbus hadn't added on that last part. Ryan was perfectly capable of cleaning himself up, and with the awkwardness that had fallen between the two, he really did not want Troy's help. __

"Okay…" Troy replied while getting up and offering Ryan a hand. Ignoring the help he was offering, Ryan stood himself up and started heading towards the bathroom, hoping maybe Troy wouldn't follow. But as he headed out of the drama room, he heard footsteps behind him and knew he was going to have no such luck.

…..

The two stood in silence as Ryan went to the sink and began washing paint off himself the best he could. He was a mess, his blonde hair was plastered with green paint and he was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to get it out until he was able to get home and shower. None the less Ryan continued to wash his face, neck, hair, and hands the best he could, and contemplated what to do with his now ruined shirt. Meanwhile, Troy stood in the background fidgeting with his hands and avoiding catching Ryan's gaze in the mirror.  
_  
"Are you sure there isn't anything I can do, I feel really bad, and I know I'm not really helping…"_ mumbled Ryan from against the tile wall. He now was looking at Ryan again, but his expression had returned to unreadable.

_"No it's fine, I'm not sure what Ms. Darbus expected you to do exactly. I just don't know what to do about my shirt. I can't exactly get this paint out …"_ Ryan continued trying to wash the paint off, now wetting paper towels and trying the best he could to sponge the paint off his shirt. He was quickly getting soaked and the paint was really just spreading more. _"Ugh, this is ruined. Maybe if I soak it in the sink and run it under the hand dryer?" _Ryan knew that if things weren't already awkward, the fact he was now going to remove his shirt might make it more so. But then again, Troy was straight and was on the basketball team, he constantly was in the locker room with guys changing, so this shouldn't even bother him. Ryan knew he was going to feel self-conscious, especially under Troy's gaze which had a slight hint of curiosity as he watched Ryan from where he was standing.

Carefully Ryan began unbuttoning his shirt and untucked it from his slacks. Slipping his arms out of the sleeves he was now standing shirtless in the mirror, and trying not to look at Troy, quickly began trying to rinse out his shirt in the sink. Looking up he met Troy's gaze in the mirror, and to his surprise Troy had turned a slight shade of pink again and his eyes had grown wide, quickly glancing away from Ryan when their eyes met again.

_"I think I have an extra shirt in my bag, I forgot I had it for practice today and just wore my uniform… I'll go get it."_ And with that Troy had quickly left the bathroom, face still pink, eyes glued to the floor.

Now Ryan was confused. Troy was acting so strange, he was red and avoiding eye contact. It just didn't make sense, it's not like he had never seen a half-naked guy before, and it shouldn't even bother him. He probably just felt bad about the fact Ryan had fallen and was now a mess. He was probably just embarrassed and didn't know how to help. That was all. But what about the gaze and that unreadable expression on his face, and the way he had so gently rubbed the paint from his face? He had touched his face so softly, it wasn't simply removing paint, but almost like a caress, and he wouldn't move his hand. Why had his hand lingered? He was probably overthinking a very innocent situation that meant nothing.

_"He's straight."_ Ryan reminded himself_. "Completely straight, and you are imagining things because you want to see something."  
_

…

__After about five minutes Troy returned carrying a white T-shirt. _"Sorry… you're thinner than me… it might be a bit baggy…"_ he stated as he handed it to Ryan. Meeting Ryan's eyes again, he turned another shade of pink, almost as if he was embarrassed by his comment.

_"I'm sure it will be fine. It's just for the rest of the day… not what I'd typically wear… but it will work" _replied Ryan with a slight grin. He didn't wear T-shirts like this, or T-shirts in general, casual wasn't really his "thing" when it came to clothing selection. Surprisingly, this made Troy grin in return and start laughing, causing Ryan to start as well.

The awkwardness that had been there quickly diminished as the two stood laughing over a T-shirt and Ryan's clothing choices. Still laughing Ryan tried to put the T-shirt on, completely missing the head hole in his fit of giggles.

_"Here, let me help_," offered Troy to this, still grinning now, probably at Ryan's awkwardness. Before Ryan had enough time to object or process what was happening, Troy had taken the shirt and pulled it down over Ryan's head. _"Arms in…"_ he stated softly, and Ryan moved his arms into his sleeves. With this Ryan expected Troy to let go, but he didn't. Gently Troy began tugging his shirt and in doing so was running his hands down Ryan's sides. Both the boys had stopped laughing at this point, and Ryan focused on Troy's slow movement and the gentle touch of his hands running down his skin. Troy's face had once again changed to that unreadable expression that Ryan had grown to hate, and was now looking at Ryan. Though Ryan's shirt was now fully on, Troy had not moved his hands from their landing place on Ryan's hips, and it felt as if he was tightening his grip slightly adding pressure with his fingertips.

Ryan could feel his breathe catch. This couldn't be an accident. Troy had to be aware of what he was doing, and logically, there was no reason why he shouldn't have moved his hands at this point. If he was straight, this couldn't make sense. _"If he was straight_." Thought Ryan, _"If."_ Both stood motionless for what seemed like minutes, both staring at one another, Troy's hands pressed into his hips.


End file.
